Echo Again
by xx-Destiny
Summary: I don't understand...I don't understand at all. Why did you leave Soubi? You said you'd always be there for me...you said you'd do whatever I asked. I didn't ask you to leave though and now I stand here in confusion. What is she to me and what are you?


Echo Again

A Loveless Fan Fiction

Ritsuka Aoyagi x (Yuiko Hawatari)

I do not own the story Loveless...even though I wish I could. It's freakin amazing.

Anyways, I hope you like it and stay tuned for the next chapter. I kind of wonder if the intro was a bit too long, but i wanted to make it not too much drama and a little action...though I don't think that worked out well in the end anyways. xDD

* * *

Was this really how it was supposed to be? Had it all been planned out, to lead to this very moment in time? Whether that was the case or not, it made things, no less difficult in the long run, but rather just the opposite. If it was to someday come to this, why even let it begin right? Pain like this should not have to be dealt to an individual and yet, here it was happening to one…no maybe that wasn't right. It was happening to two people…wasn't it? Surely the receiving end couldn't be the only one affected by this. It had to hurt him too right? Or was that just a part of the plan too? Pretend…a ruse…using …no it couldn't even be called that. He had not been used; he had been experimented on. He had been played with and despite all his best efforts; there was no stopping the wave of emotion drowning him at this very moment. Ritsuka Aoyagi had never been prepared for the day Agatsuma Soubi would leave him yet why should he have been?

He had promised Ritsuka so much; told Ritsuka so much and now it was all just one big ferocious lie? Maybe it wasn't a lie…maybe it was the truth but then why would things be turning out this way if that was the case? There was no explanation to any of this and there had been no hint of the bomb that would be dropped on Ritsuka's life. Perhaps this was the point all along; everyone was always being taken away from him, or leaving him. He hated being alone, the thought of it chilling his heart to ice and yet it happened. First Seimei was taken from him and now the only person other than Ritsuka himself, which had been close to Seimei, was being torn away from him. No…this wasn't being torn. Soubi wanted to leave; he wanted to abandon Ritsuka and leave him destroyed. He was freely breaking their connection with each other; the bond that had made them so close and he had no explanation for why it was being done. Always just the same lies:

"I'm sorry Ritsuka, I have to."

That was all he had heard each time he had asked why and it was nothing but a lie. It frustrated Ritsuka to no end; Soubi had promised to do whatever he asked and even when commanded he tell the truth, he withheld whatever was significant…important. He was nothing but a liar. Yet that changed nothing; Ritsuka was still more attached to Soubi than ever; he was lost without him and it was devastation among devastations…that day when it had finally come; the goodbyes and the parting of ways. Why did it have to be raining? Was that some sort of ironic cliché?

* * *

"You can't…you promised you'd never leave!"

"I'm sorry Ritsuka…"

"Stop lying to me!! Be honest for once!" His hands grabbed his hair, clenching it tightly as Ritsuka collapsed to his knees, not bothering to give Soubi another look. This was torture; this was the feeling of wanting to die all over again. Why did this have to happen? He would have been better off without Soubi ever being there at the front gates on that fateful day. Why did he have to know Seimei? Why did all these events have to happen in between?

"I love–"

"Shut up! Don't you ever say that to me again!"

His hands fell down by his side; he was empty… he couldn't even be bothered to look up; why look at the person who was ripping him to shreds? It'd probably give him more satisfaction and that was something Ritsuka would not concede too. He had been lied to; he had been abused by Soubi's words; completely taken over and entranced and the blame was fully his. He should have known…he should have seen this coming…Soubi always kept secrets; he always abused Ritsuka with his knowledge of knowing and not telling. He told lies to gain Ritsuka's trust and it was all for what? What had Soubi possibly gained out of this? Ritsuka couldn't be bothered to think about it; he didn't even want to know because to him there was nothing worth hurting someone over. It was the worst kind of pain imaginable; more horrible than being rejected around school; that was tolerable; more horrible than the physical abuse given to him almost every day by his mother; it was deserved; this was just stabbing someone in their heart and watching the blood slowly trickle away.

"I…I – command…I command you to stay here."

He had said it so weakly; his voice barely audible though he knew Soubi would hear him. It was a command and so of course he would hear. For once, Ritsuka hoped he would obey a command without hesitation; he just wanted this one command and then Ritsuka wouldn't care how many lies he told; how many secrets he kept.

"I'm sorry Ritsuka, I can't."

"NO! Don't say that word! I hate that; you can and you will." He was crying now. "You're supposed to listen to me, that's what you said so STAY!" This was much worse than it needed to be. Ritsuka had not wanted to cry…he told himself he would not but he couldn't even keep a promise to himself. This was all wrong and he wished it was some sort of joke. Why would this be happening to him? He had suffered enough hadn't he? He had lost his memories, lost his brother, lost his mother and now he was losing the only thing he had left. It was like his heart was glass and it had been dropped to be shatter into a million pieces.

It had started to rain now but Ritsuka had not noticed. He was numb and he did not care in the least If he became sick…he just couldn't die. His mother needed him; he couldn't just leave her no matter what. Right now, more than anything, he wished with all of his heart that the real Ritsuka would come back. The Ritsuka that did not know Soubi; that would not be suffering right now; collapsed on the soaked ground, being drenched by the eternal rainfall. Ritsuka's eyes stayed focus on the ground watching as each drop hit with a crashing thud; that was his life at this very moment. Crashing without a parachute, and to die from impact; it was so very ironic. Were the clouds crying for Ritsuka too? They must have been warned ahead of time to be so perfectly in tune with Ritsuka's pain. He felt a tight grip grasp the bicep of his left arm and he was hoisted into someone's arms. He did not know who, nor did he really care. He was an empty shell; he could feel as whoever held him walked off his own head shielding Ritsuka's face from the rain as he blankly stared up at the gray sky.

Who was this person? Had Soubi already left? Where was this person going to take Ritsuka now? Heh, it wasn't really important; surely there was no place Ritsuka could go that would make anything worse. This could have been a complete stranger, about to take Ritsuka's innocence and he would not have cared; would not have noticed. He was shivering now, the cold getting to him easily as he had not really dressed for the rainy occasion. He couldn't really tell though; all he had to go off of was the chattering his teeth were making as they constantly banged against each other noisily. His eyes glanced down and Ritsuka looked towards the direction in which they were headed; it looked familiar but Ritsuka could not care to remember why.

"Where?" It was all he could say as he blankly stared out at the street in front of him. He received no answer and so he simply closed his eyes; his head turning into the warm body that held him. This person was so warm…a different kind of warm, but it couldn't have been him. Surely he would have left by now, right?

'Yes', Ritsuka thought. He's left me by now and there's nothing I can do about it.

"I'm…alone…"

* * *

The ringing of the alarm clock caused Ritsuka to awake, though groggy as it was as he glanced at the clock for a moment before finally sitting up and switching pulsating ring off. He sat there for a moment, looking down at his hands and thinking to himself. What had happened? Had it all just been a nightmare? Surely he really didn't leave…did he? Ritsuka didn't really want to think about it right now; he glanced again at the clock and with a hesitant sigh, he got himself up and began preparing for school. He was ready to go in a matter of fifteen to twenty minutes and he carried himself down the stairs and towards the front door.

"I'm leaving…"

He didn't bother to wait for an answer; for he knew he wouldn't get one. Instead he opened the door and proceeded forward and to school. He wouldn't be late since he had set his alarm clock at an unusually early time…he hadn't remembered doing that but he didn't think too much on the matter. He must have been tired last night to not remember.

As he continued walking, he thought back to his nightmare. _'It must have been a dream'_, he thought yet even as he thought the words, he couldn't help feel a bit of pain as if he, himself didn't believe them. He quickly pulled his phone out of his pocket and flipped it open. No new emails or anything; 

a frown appeared on his face as Ritsuka stared at the phone while continuing on his steady pace to school. He would call Soubi later or something…he was already almost to school and there was no point in making him fusses over a silly dream. Ritsuka again felt that familiar pain, like a sheer iciness to his insides; he shivered on the spot as he walked through the gates to his school.

Classroom 3-A…Ritsuka opened the door and walked in, his eyes kept on the floor as he took his seat near the window. He had not even really acknowledged the fact that the usual, "Ritsuka-kun!" had not yet echoed in his ear and for a moment, it took him a while to realize that someone was missing. His head lifting up, he looked around to in fact see no Yuiko. 'Is she late or something?' He thought to himself, as he interlocked his fingers with one another and rest his chin on their combined strength; his eyes glanced outwards towards the window and as he waited for class to start, Ritsuka could not help but to think about that 'nightmare' again. Soubi had lied…Soubi had left…Ritsuka had suffered and someone had taken him…somewhere. It was weird but that was the best Ritsuka could manage to put it and it still made no sense to him whatsoever. The bell rang and Ritsuka repositioned himself only to see Yuiko's seat, still empty. He arched an eyebrow a bit out of morbid curiosity and some concern; had something happened to her? Maybe she was sick, though she was fine yesterday…Maybe something was wrong? Whatever the case, Ritsuka did not feel at all well about this.

Again he pulled out his phone and checked it; no emails from her either. "Hmm…" Perhaps it was best if he sent one to her. She might not respond but that would be telling him something as well. He quickly typed out his message before staring at it for a moment:

"Hey, where are you?

Are you alright?"

His expression was unreadable, as he sent the message off and placed his phone back in his pocket. Ritsuka's eyes then wandered up to the front of the class, where Shinonome-sensei had already begun speaking. He was not really paying attention since he didn't need to. His grades were close to perfect if not indeed that and there was a more pressing matter at hand. Fifteen minutes had gone by and still no response from Yuiko; maybe she was just sleeping in but that would mean she really was sick right? How could she have gotten sick that fast though? She hadn't even called to tell Ritsuka last night…from what he could remember. Another couple of minutes had gone by in dull silence at least for Ritsuka; he wasn't paying attention at all, but playing with a pencil; he could hear a couple whispers and his name was thrown in a few times along with Yuiko's. What did they think had happened? What kind of rumors would they spread now?

There was suddenly a low pulse ringing that filled the room and brought silence to the class. Ritsuka had been shocked out of his obsession with his pencil, and quickly reached for his phone, not bothering to care whether it was seen. He flipped it opened and seeing the new email from Yuiko, he proceeded to open it. It was a moment or two of silence again; he could hear Shinonome-sensei calling his name but it was as if he had almost completely toned her out as his eyes widened in response to the email on his phone.

"We have your friend Loveless.

Meet us at the park or she'll be losing a lot more than her life by the time we're done.

You have fifteen minutes –"

Ritsuka stood up almost subconsciously and grabbed his bag. Slinging it over his head and onto his shoulder, he stuffed his phone back into his pocket and made a run for the door.

"Ritsuka-kun, where are you –" Shinonome-sensei had started out.

"Sorry, I'll be right back Shinonome-sensei." He had not bothered to tell her that he was going to get Yuiko. That would only arouse suspicion and knowing how she was, she might even intend to follow after him. Ritsuka couldn't let that happen; Yuiko was already in danger though how this had happened, he had no way of knowing. What did Seven Moons want with Ritsuka now? He had fully intended to log back into Wisdom Resurrection tonight…they couldn't wait? Why did they have to involve Yuiko in all this as well? Surely they could have just gotten to Soubi and Ritsuka surely would have come after that. Speaking of which…

He had already been pressing the one on his phone; speed dialing really was quite quick and as he placed the phone to his ear, Ritsuka turned another corner and came even closer to the park. The phone did not even bother to ring, but proceeded to say that the line was disconnected and no longer in use. Ritsuka stopped suddenly and stared at his phone dumbfounded. Disconnected? Why would Soubi disconnect his phone? Wasn't this their way of always staying connected? Didn't he say he would always pick up for Ritsuka?

"Soubi, you lying jerk!"

Ritsuka began running again, he was running out of time and that was Yuiko's life on the line. He couldn't afford to let anything bad happen to her. The park was in distance of his sight and Ritsuka was relieved to see Yuiko down below as he ran down the grassy hill and came to an abrupt halt. He stopped before a bound Yuiko and two individuals he have never seen before; one male and one female.

"I'm here now, so let her go."

There was instant laughter from the two as the male doubled over in a fit of joy. Ritsuka felt his fists clench as he watched whoever this was just laugh it up; it was annoying…he was annoying. The laughter stopped though and the male seemed to suddenly get serious as his smile dissipated and he stared at Ritsuka coldly before looking around.

"Where's Agatsuma Soubi?"

The name hit Ritsuka like that same iciness from before and he immediately collapsed to his knees, holding his stomach in shock. Yuiko, who was surprisingly not gagged, seemed to come out of whatever trance she had been in, finally noticing Ritsuka.

"Ritsuka-kun, what's wrong?!"

He couldn't even understand it himself; what was wrong with Ritsuka to the point where the mere mentioning of Soubi's name caused him to act this way? He staggered to stand and his eyes came back to those who were now watching him quite…surprised by his current breakdown. He was just as surprised as they were so all he could give them was a shake of the head.

"I…I…don't know where he is."

Saying those words seemed to confirm something within Ritsuka…the nightmare was not a nightmare. Soubi was gone…he did not know where…he would not be coming back…Ritsuka was alone.

The male stared at Ritsuka for a moment not sure if he had heard right. Looking back at his partner, she just shrugged and turned her attention back to Ritsuka as well. Silent conversations…they were always annoying; Ritsuka wanted to know what was going on and if they were going to let Yuiko go or not.

"What do you mean you don't know where he is?" The girl had spoken this time and it certainly wasn't what Ritsuka expected. She looked so serious at first but her voice was so cheerful, so high…it was weird to say the least. What was even weirder was that these two didn't even have their ears and tails. They couldn't have even been much older than Ritsuka himself, if EVEN older for that matter. Something was definitely a bit unusual here.

Ritsuka tilted his head out of confusion. What did she mean, what did he mean? It was pretty self explanatory wasn't it? He didn't know where…where he was. That was pretty much all there was too it.

"Just what I told you…I don't know where he is. That's beside the point though. You told me to come and now I'm here so let Yuiko go."

Yuiko had never seemed so happy before; _'Ritsuka-kun came just to rescue me?! Oh wow, he really does like me, he really does!!' _She was practically squealing on the inside, her face blushing as she looked towards Ritsuka and was contorting herself, moving up and down as if she had to use the bathroom.

Ritsuka looked at her for a moment, not sure as to what her deal was. "…What an idiot." He said it a bit louder than he intended to, but nevertheless she had not heard him.

"We agree with you on that one." The pair had spoken together and as Ritsuka glared at them, they simply smiled back and with a simple sigh, released Yuiko. "We can't really take you on if you don't have Soubi with you. That was the whole point after all."

Ritsuka cringed again at the speaking of his name and then looked down towards Yuiko who had practically been tossed rather than released. "Are you alright Yuiko?"

Yuiko shook her head, apparently there were cobwebs and as Ritsuka considered that, he decided to make no comment against himself as she stood up and practically scrambled towards him, stopping inches from his face.

"Yes, I'm all better thanks to you Ritsuka-kun. You're my hero!" She embraced him tightly and mind you, despite being only in sixth grade, Yuiko Hawatari had the bust of a high school beauty queen; her chest practically suffocating him, until he finally hugged her back and she released him.

Gasping for air a bit, Ritsuka sighed and looked at Yuiko…she seemed alright which was good. Not that he could do anything against these two anyways, but still, it was good. He turned his attention back towards the two.

"Why do you want with me?

"…You? Nono, you're mistake, we want Agatsuma Soubi." The girl spoke again, her unusual voice a bit of a nuisance to Ritsuka still. "We called you because we figured he'd be with you like Nagase-sensei said"

Ritsuka twitched as he processed that through his head. _'They just wanted him, huh? Why though? And Nagase-san again? What does she want this time?'_ His eyes trailed down to the ground for a moment as he thought this through for a moment.

"What do you want with…Soubi?" The chill that ran through his body wasn't as bad this time, but still it made him shiver slightly; hopefully not enough to gain their notice. He took a quick glance towards them again, but they seemed to be conversing on whether or not they should tell him.

"Hey..uhm Ritsuka-kun? Who are these guys anyway?" Ritsuka had almost forgotten Yuiko was standing as odd as that was, and he quickly turned towards her. He wasn't sure what to say…she shouldn't be here just in case something _did_ happen. He thought about it for a moment, before looking at her again.

"Yeah Yuiko, they're friends. You should get going to class; Shinonome-sensei will want to know that you're actually here today, just tardy." Ritsuka smiled as his sincerely as he possibly could force him to and then turned his attention back to the pair in front of him.

Yuiko didn't know what was going on, but something surely didn't seem right about Ritsuka at the moment. "But…Ritsuka-kun should–"

"I'll meet you back at school Yuiko, just go…please."

Yuiko frowned, still looking at Ritsuka's back. Something was definitely wrong; Ritsuka seemed so unlike himself right now. He was practically begging her to go back to class; what was going to happen when she did? She didn't want to think about it…Ritsuka would be okay, she knew it and if not, surely Soubi would come and take care of him, right? She seemed to confirm her own answer as she nodded and then turned away.

"I'll…I'll see you back at school then Ritsuka-kun." And then she was gone.

The duo watched her go, mildly interested before they turned their attention back to Ritsuka. The male looked towards his partner, a frown on his face as he sighed and seemed to be whispering something to her. Again she shrugged, and the conversation continued with Ritsuka standing there annoyed. _'What was with people and their rude manners?' _he thought to himself.

The conversation seemed to come to an end after five minutes and the male took his glance back towards Ritsuka; now looking more than a bit annoyed at the outcome of the situation.

"Well since you don't seem to know where Soubi is, guess we'll just take our leave. We'll come back when you seem to get a better leash on him."

'_What? They're just going to leave after kidnapping Yuiko and thinking that it was nothing?'_That made Ritsuka mad more than anything; people just using people again to get whatever they wanted and this was no different. Using Yuiko…was using Ritsuka just to get to him? Who cared about him anyway? He was gone, he left, he was a thing of the past…he had nothing to do with Ritsuka anymore. He glanced down towards the grassy ground and his fists clenched tight as all these thoughts raced through his head simultaneously.

"…No."

The two had been turned to leave, but stopped in their tracks at Ritsuka's word.

"What?" They spoke together, they truly were a duo.

"I'm not going to let you leave without telling me what I want to know first." He still had to find Seimei's killer. Even without him here, he could do it on his own. He had been doing most of it on his own…the game, the questions…but he had done more…

"You're not going to let us…? You say that as if you can stop us? You have no fighter Loveless, so what can you possibly do?"

They were right after all; Ritsuka had no fighter and without one, he couldn't Spell Battle then and force the information about Seven Moons out of them. There really was nothing he could do…except.

"I don't need a fighter….I'll do this myself." Ritsuka didn't know how the words had come out like that. That was not what he was planning at all and yet he had said them…what if they accepted that as a terms of battle? Without a fighter, he was finished…a sacrifice only took the pain…what was he going to do, challenge them to an endurance test?

The pair stared at each other for a moment, obviously confused by Ritsuka's words before they both shook their heads, a wide grin coming across the male's face.

"Haha, you know what? I was hoping you'd be a little fun. We accept."

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this and I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible. I would greatly appreciate it if you left comments. It really helps if I know what I'm doing right and wrong and either way it makes me feel better so please don't hold back.


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